1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a manual transmission for motor vehicles, and more particularly to a variable speed manual transmission of the type which includes four axes upon which the drive elements are mounted.
2. Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,458,551 issued on July 10, 1984 discloses a variable speed manual transmission which includes an input shaft having a drive pinion fixed thereon, an output shaft coaxial with the input shaft and having a first synchronizer coupling adapted to selectively connect the input shaft to the output shaft and first, second, third, fourth and fifth pinions, a first intermediate shaft having first and second gears fixed thereon and located on opposite axial ends of the first synchronizer coupling, a second synchronizer coupling mounted thereon and third and fourth gears selectively connectable to the first intermediate shaft by the second synchronizer coupling, and a second intermediate shaft having a fifth gear fixed thereon, a third synchronizer coupling mounted thereon, and sixth and seventh gears selectively connectable to the second intermediate shaft by the third synchronizer coupling. The third, fourth and fifth pinions are continuously engaged with the third, fourth and sixth gears, respectively, the first pinion is continuously engaged with the second gear, and the first and fifth gears are continuously engaged with the drive pinion. In such an arrangement, the axial length of the transmission may not be shortened due to coaxial arrangement of the input and output shafts, and the output shaft is located at the same height as the input shaft. For these reasons, it is difficult to manufacture the manual transmission in a compact construction, and it is also difficult to mount the manual transmission on a desired portion of a motor vehicle.